At her Milan apartment, Eleonore Cavalli—the art director of Visionnaire—fused the brand’s classical furniture with contemporary art to create an edgy family home

The ‘Speyer’ bookshelf and ‘Brunilde’ wall lamp are by Alessandro La Spada and Samuele Mazza; the ‘Saturnia’ ceiling lamp and ‘Aspen’ metallic cushions are by Philippe Montels; the carpet is from Visionnaire.

A historic building overlooking a patch of greenery; Roman ruins; the stillness of a quiet day punctuated by the tolling of church bells. You’d think this was a typical day in the countryside. Except that this is not your regular off-the-grid locale; this is Milan—a decidedly globalized city. And in its historic heart, Sant’Ambrogio, is where Eleonore Cavalli decided to set up home, moving to the city two years ago from the south of Bologna, where she lived in a 17th-century villa with her family. To the casual observer, Cavalli and her art-curator husband, Marco Morandini, had the standard relocation process entirely backwards. But for the art director of classical Italian furniture brand Visionnaire, family always comes first. “Our eldest son, Matteo, is learning dance at Accademia del Teatro alla Scala, Milan, and we moved here to support him in this part of his journey,” says Cavalli.

OPEN SEASONGiven the magnificent natural light flooding its spacious interiors, the 350-square-metre, fourth-floor apartment in this corner of the city appealed to Cavalli and Morandini immediately. But not before they were done with transforming the place to make sure it lived up to its potential. When the couple first laid eyes on it, the house had a very compartmentalized layout that did nothing to highlight “the natural light that streams in from outside”. So the first things to go were several walls in the living room, which was earlier divided into four rooms by a corridor. Now a single open space, Cavalli says, “it has given the home a stronger contemporary identity”. Once the space was opened out, the living room became the heart of the four-bedroom house. “It is the part we value the most,” she adds, describing it as the centre of their daily activities, where they congregate for meals, work, or relaxation.

Completely hands-on when it came to redoing the space, the couple had the benefit of their own professional expertise to engineer the transformation. “From the very beginning, we had a clear dialogue between spaces and design,” Cavalli says. As a result, the restructuring process took them only a few months. “If we had to mirror ourselves in our home, it would reflect a sober and thoughtful personality with hints of exuberance. My husband and I like to contrast soft and warm colours, and offset materials like velvets against stainless steel, bronze and crystals.” In this case, they layered a neutral space with a strong personality, through furniture, lights and accessories. A pristine white shade went up on the walls and “gave a sense of light and cleanliness to the rooms. It also became one of the essential buffers in our interiors, mediating between the furnishings and our selection of art”, Cavalli explains.

The ‘Eugene’ sofa is by Roberto Lazzeroni. The ‘Lancillotto’ low table and ‘Brunilde’ wall lamps are by Alessandro La Spada and Samuele Mazza. The artwork on the wall is by Susy Gómez. The vase sculpture is by Stefania Pennacchio. The ‘Tinne’ ceramic wall sculptures were designed by Samuele Mazza.

TREASURE HUNTWhen it came to furnishing, the couple didn’t have to look far. “I have many pieces of Visionnaire furniture that we collected over the years,” says Cavalli. She had a diverse collection to choose from, and did full justice to the variety at her disposal. With the occasional splash of bold colours to offset the minimalism that they tend towards, the couple set about articulating a coherent interaction between pure, minimal forms and others that were more complex.

Pairing the vintage with the modern, and clean-lined symmetry with fluid forms, Cavalli chose pieces that also complemented the proportions of the house. Like the classic form of the ‘Galahad’ chandelier, which is made of aluminium bars. Or the ‘Ginevra’ sofa that highlights the sharp symmetry of the ‘Keu’ dining table. “We like to combine these pieces and create a dialogue with some vintage designs as well, such as the brass cabinets with bronzed mirrors that are in our bedroom, or the contemporary accessories in polycarbonate, creating a sort of confrontation,” she explains.

While the furniture and accessories add an artistic touch to the contemporary space, artworks add to the conversation—an inevitability, given that both Cavalli and Morandini are passionate collectors. “We believe that an interior project must include a balance between furniture and art pieces.” The selection of works was pure intuition for Cavalli, who let the art dictate its placement in the house. “I can’t say that I follow specific ideas for placement of art, but every time, it finds its natural place,” she explains. The most recent addition to the art in the space is a kinetic sculpture of a symbolic flower placed inside a niche, “to remind us of our roots”, adds Cavalli.

And they are strong roots that reach deep into history, art, fashion and design. “All the pieces in my home are special. I love each one individually as they are all designed for the purpose of beauty and functionality.” There simply could not be a more perfect setup—for the furniture, the art or the people inhabiting the space.

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In the dining room, the ‘Keu’ table is by Alessandro La Spada and Samuele Mazza; the ‘Galahad’ chandelier is by Alessandro La Spada, Samuele Mazza and Philippe Montels; the ceramic artworks on the table are by Rita Miranda, and the artwork on the wall is by Loris Cecchini.

The ‘Ginevra’ sofa and ‘Lancillotto’ centre table are Alessandro La Spada and Samuele Mazza designs; the ‘Helmut’ vase is by Samuele Mazza; the ‘Gothic Dreaming’ tiles on the centre table were designed by La Conca; the oil painting is by Emmanuel Barcilon.

Homeowner Eleonore Cavalli and her husband Marco Morandini; the sculpture is by Alessandro Brighetti.

The ‘Big Sleep’ bed is by Roberto Lazzeroni; the ‘Mizar’ chandelier is by Alessandro La Spada and Samuele Mazza; the ‘Lydia’ table lamp is by Giuseppe Viganò; the oil painting is by Italian artist Domenico Grenci.

The custom-made bed was created by the Visionnaire team. The ‘Kenanz’ side table is by Steve Leung. The ‘Breuil’ chandelier is by Samuele Mazza. The oil painting is by a German artist.